Alford to reunite with Zeus tonight

Champion reinsman Chris Alford will renew his racetrack partnership with globetrotting squaregaiter Aldebaran Zeus (Muscle Hill) when he makes a long-awaited return to Australian harness racing at Melton tonight.

The Brent Lilley-trained trotter campaigned in New Zealand and the United States through much of 2023 but is back for his first race on our shores since April last year.

The multiple Group 1 winner tuned up for the TAB Lenin Trotters Free For All with a slick second placing at the trials on Monday and Alford liked what he felt.

“He seems to have come back really happy and well,” Alford told Harness Racing Victoria’s Burning Questions program.

“He travelled really well the other night and hit the line good. He still had something left, but he’d want to going into a free for all this week.”

Aldebaran Zeus, who beat champion squaregaiter Just Believe at Menangle in March 2023, has been well backed since markets opened to be a firm favourite for tonight’s event.

He starts from barrier three but does have noted gate speed runners Sundons Courage and Gaelic Lad drawn inside him.

“You can never guess what they’re going to do with Sundons Courage – sometimes they hold, sometimes they hand up. He doesn’t have to burn the gate to win the race, so we’ll just play it by ear,” Alford said.

“Ollivici and One Over All are going really well – they’re going to be hard to beat – but I think with any luck in the run he’ll be very hard to beat.”

Tonight’s TAB Lenin Trotters Free For All is race two on the Melton card and is set to go at 5.29pm.

For complete race entries, click here.

by Tim O’Connor, for HRV